In my quest to find and try more and more unusual edibles I decided to make the most of what we've got here on the homestead and make sure I know which plants are edible and which aren't
Outside our front door we've got two large clumps of day lilies. They always put on a great display at this time of year although I have to keep them trimmed back otherwise they engulf the path and we can't get in!
Turns out the best thing is they're edible! And they actually taste good! So far I've only eaten the pods raw and they taste like mange tout and are lovely and crisp.
Apparently they've been used in Asian cooking for hundreds of years and every bit of the plant is edible. The pods and the flowers are great in stir fries, the roots are nice roasted and the spent flowers are dried and used to thicken soups and stews. Even the young shoots are meant to taste amazing.
It's a plant I want to experiment with more and try to use in our cooking a little bit. It's also one that looks amazing!
Anyone have something growing in their yard or garden that they didn't know was edible?
I had read in James Wong book they were edible, you are the only other person I know who has tried them, I am planing a big border of edibles, working from James Wong book.
ReplyDeleteI first read it in Alys Flower's Thrifty Forager (which is another good book I picked up at the works for a few quid) and this year I decided to try them. Anyone who comes to my front door now gets forced into trying them! I'm think the same with a boarder when I build my new shed but with lots of roses as well so I can make rose sugar and rose water, along with hostas and day lillies and maybe my blue sausage at the bottom of it all!
DeleteI read that the seeds of Himalayan Water Balsam are used in curries/ dahls etc. and goodness knows there is enough about! We have balsam-pulling work parties along the canal. I told myself I would try it this year. The problem will be harvesting the seed before it "explodes".
ReplyDeleteApparently the best way to to put a bag over it and shake it so they all pop into the bag. We used to fire the stuff at each other as kids as loads grew in a field we rented! Let me know what it's like. No good if you've got a composting loo though I guess!
DeleteI have started eating the leaves from green plants like Broccoli. The cattle normally get it to eat. I often chew Sheep Sorrel (very thirst quenching) in the fields. Believe you can eat Dock leaves when they are little? Think Saffron comes from Crocus bulbs. Doesn't it?
ReplyDeleteI quite often pick sorrel out in the field and eat it, but I was brought up crewing a piece of grass like a "propper" farm boy - something I've tried to stop now so my girls don't look too much like bumpkins! I was looking at buying some saffron bulbs the other day. make sure it's the right sort or it's poisonous. It needs to be Crocus Sativus (Latin name) to be the right sort, worth more per gram than gold when you harvest it!
DeleteYou are right about finding out if it's the right sort or poisonous. Especially wild mushrooms and berries. Talking about expensive bulbs. When the'Tulip Mania' happened in Holland in the 1637 A single bulb could be swapped for twelve acres of land.
ReplyDeleteAnd the boom ended rather abruptly as well, if I remember my gardening history. Wish I could get 12 acres for something I grow now!
DeleteI knew the daylily flowers were edible and have seen recipes for fritters. But I didn't know about the rest, thanks Kev! Our daylily season is done with for the year, but I would still be interested in trying the roots.
ReplyDeleteJust make sure you check they're the right sort! I've read the roots are meant to taste amazing, just like potatoes, I'll wait and see what you think before I dig mine up!
DeleteWe keep talking about looking for plants to eat outside of what is grown in our veg plot, but although we would like to experiment with what else grows on our farm we lack the nerve at the moment! I don't even know what sorrel looks like, so methinks that I should buy in some books on the subject or 'wild' eating!
ReplyDeleteSorrel was one of the first herbs I really learned to spot. It tastes like apples (slightly sour). I have planted different sorts in the garden as well. the red veined type is really pretty in a salad. Also makes a nice sauce to go with a poached egg!
DeleteWe have the day lily growing wild along the creek flood plain and around our house but I haven't tried them. One guy said that he ate the roots and it pretty much cleaned out his digestive system, who knows what he really ate or if he cooked it. I don't see any animals eating them which is kind of strange and has caused me not to mess with them though I have heard they are fine.
ReplyDeleteIf it's not native though a lot of animals will leave it alone. If you do try it start with a small bit first!
DeleteI have more day lilies than I care to think of...they are weeds here. We are going to get rid of them,but if I can roast the roots then at least we'll get something from them when they are pulled out.As Sunnybrook farm says,I've not seen any critters eat them,so perhaps ours are not the same as yours.
ReplyDeleteJane x
Jane x
No animals eat our either. Get them up on google or a good book and check they're the right ones before you eat them, but they do taste good!
DeleteI have never known if the daylilies are edible. Sounds so interesting! they look so beautiful. The taste must be so delicious. Thanks for sharing
ReplyDeleteThey've got a good crunch to them and a flavour of peas. I imagine they'd be nice in a stir fry, or as fritters.
DeleteHow absolutely fascinating, I must rush out and try mine too! You never fail to amaze me Kev, whatever will you come up with next I wonder?
ReplyDeleteI've a few more unusual things yet! Thanks for the lovely comment!
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